External beam radiotherapy

Your doctor will discuss your treatment with you beforehand and answer any questions you have.

You will normally have radiotherapy to the area of the bone affected by the cancer. It usually takes 7 to 10 days for radiotherapy to start reducing bone pain, and it may take up to six weeks before you feel the full effect. You may notice that any pain you have becomes slightly worse before getting better.

During this time, it’s important to continue taking the painkillers prescribed by your doctor. As your pain improves, you may be able to reduce the amount of painkillers. But it’s important to talk to your doctor or nurse before adjusting the dose.

External radiotherapy does not make you radioactive. It’s perfectly safe to be with other people after treatment, including children.

Radiotherapy explained

Side effects of external beam radiotherapy

This type of radiotherapy usually causes very few side effects. However, treatment to bones in certain areas of the body, such as the ribs or the spine, may make you feel sick for a couple of days after the treatment. Radiotherapy treatment to your pelvis may cause diarrhoea. These side effects can usually be prevented by taking anti-sickness (anti-emetic) or anti-diarrhoea medicines.

Before your treatment starts, your doctor, nurse or radiographer (who gives the radiotherapy) will discuss with you any likely side effects. They’ll also arrange for you to have any drugs you may need to manage these side effects.

We have a video of an oncologist explaining how external radiotherapy works and showing the machine that you might find helpful.

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Secondary bone cancer is cancer that has spread to the bones from a primary cancer somewhere else in the body. This group is for people affected by secondary bone cancer to share experiences and get support.

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